By IAN WILSON
Swift Current will look to make a speedy return to the winning ways that 57’s fans have become accustomed to.
After finishing just above the .500 mark in 2022, the Western Canadian Baseball League (WCBL) club struggled last summer, picking up just 19 wins in 56 games.
It was still a good enough record to qualify for the 2023 postseason, but the Moose Jaw Miller Express swept them out of the playoffs in their best-of-three opening series.
The 57’s have been a championship-calibre squad dating back to their time in the Saskatchewan Major Baseball League (SMBL) in the 1990s. They followed up five SMBL titles that decade with another seven championships in the Western Major Baseball League (WMBL) – the predecessor of the WCBL – since 2000.
Swift Current’s last victory lap with the Harry Hallis Memorial Trophy took place in 2017 under head coach Joe Carnahan, who has since taken on the skipper role with the expansion Saskatoon Berries.
Before they talk titles though, the 57’s will need to establish that they are a legitimate playoff team again.
Can they prove themselves during the regular season this summer and find a way to pick up some playoff wins come August?
IN THE DUGOUT
An experienced and well-traveled coaching staff will guide Swift Current.
Jason Veyna steps in as the head coach and general manager of the 57’s after serving several coaching roles with the Regina Red Sox since 2018.
“I look forward to the new opportunity with the 57’s winning history and I’m grateful to be working with an experienced staff,” said Veyna in a press release.
“We have great local talent at our nucleus.”
Veyna’s assistant coach, Ruddy Estrella, comes over to Swift Current following his time as the head coach of the Brooks Bombers in 2023. Veyna and Estrella have worked together in Regina and as coaches with the Trinidad State College Trojans.
Shawn Lee has also taken on an assistant coaching position with the club. The Gosnell, Arkansas native played for the 57’s between 2007 and 2011. He was also a draft pick of the Atlanta Braves.
Darian Engelhardt – who worked previously for the Regina Red Sox and is the equipment manager with the Swift Current Broncos of the Western Hockey League (WHL) – is the team’s clubhouse manager.
Meanwhile, Jasmine Temoshawsky will serve as the trainer in Swift Current.
ON THE MOUND
Kenny Jinks is back as a dominant presence on the pitching staff. The 6-foot-4 southpaw logged 55 innings over 20 games for the 57’s last summer. He went 5-4 with a 3.27 earned run average (ERA) while collecting three saves and 59 strikeouts.
Another lefty option is Jake Olguin-Pacheco, a sophomore at Colorado State University Pueblo. In 17 appearances and 26-plus innings, he had 29 Ks this season. Olguin-Pacheco is also available to play in the outfield.
Matthew Chandler, an Iowa Western Community College student, is also a southpaw and his brother, Jacob Chandler, is listed as a right-handed pitcher. The Chandlers join the team from Papillion, Nebraska.
Gabriel Watson is a returning player who is a two-way threat. The Texan appeared in 16 games for Swift Current on the mound as a righty in 2023 and collected 18 strikeouts in 15.2 innings. At the plate, the Amarillo College sophomore had 24 hits in 110 at bats.
Swift Current has a number of righthanders to choose from this summer, including Jose Escalante, Jaylen Gutierrez, Lachlan Hockey, Klevert Martina, Andres Mendez, Zach Radigan and Carlos Solano.
Gutierrez is a native of the Bronx in New York, while Radigan is a junior from Littleton, Colorado.
The other pitchers are joining the 57’s from all over the world. Hockey may have a Canadian-sounding last name but he is from Geelong in Australia. The 6-foot-2 sophomore plays for Veyna and Estrella at Trinidad State.
Escalante and Solano are both from LaRomana in the Dominican Republic and Martina comes to the team from the island nation of Curacao.
Meanwhile, Mendez is a junior at Florida Memorial University who hails from Mexico City in Mexico.
BEHIND THE PLATE
A pair of familiar faces will crouch behind the dish for Swift Current this summer.
Saskatoon sophomore Casey Prychak played in 23 regular-season contests – as well as both playoff games – for the 57’s in 2023, while hometown product Rydell Adair got into four WCBL games last year. In 32 games with the Otero Rattlers in 2023-24, Prychak picked up 15 runs and 14 runs batted in (RBI), while posting a .384 on-base percentage.
Australian Marcus Graham joins Swift Current after two seasons at Arizona Western College. He played in 87 games and recorded 44 runs and 34 RBI while getting on base at a .419 clip.
Luis Ayala is a product of Panama City, Panama who studies at Fort Hays State University. Through 40 games, the junior smacked out 20 hits, including five doubles.
AROUND THE HORN
Local product Brody Alexandre will provide a veteran presence to the infield. The lefty hitter batted .291 with 20 runs and 18 RBI for the 57’s last summer. Alexandre has been excellent under Veyna and Estrella at Trinidad State College. In 66 games with the Trojans over two seasons, he batted .330 with a .464 on-base percentage while smacking nine homers.
Infielder Juan Garcia is a sophomore from Round Rock, Texas who suited up in 52 games for El Paso Community College this year. Garcia had a .413 batting average, 66 runs, 42 RBI and 15 stolen bases.
New to the team from Southeastern University is Cristopher Munoz, a consistent hitter with a .322 batting average, 45 runs, 41 RBI and 16 steals in his 53 games of play in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA).
Colorado State University Pueblo infielder Brad Stone has shown the ability to get on base with regularity. The Las Vegas product has a .450 on-base percentage, 47 runs scored and 30 RBI through 51 games this year.
Sophomore Cullen Verville cracks the Swift Current roster out of Colorado Northwestern Community College. In 42 games for the Trojans this season, Verville had a .321 batting average, 24 runs and 16 RBI.
IN THE OUTFIELD
Luca Hoerger, a freshman originally from Heidenheim, Germany, is new to the team. In 53 games at Arizona Western College this season, he put in a .294 batting average, 37 runs, 33 RBI and nine stolen bases.
Another international addition to the roster is Freidy DeLaRosa, who calls the Dominican Republic home and plays for El Paso Community College. In 45 games in 2023-24, DeLaRosa manufactured 41 runs, 42 RBI, 10 homers, 11 steals and a .352 batting average.
Fellow Dominican Jonatan Clough brings a power-speed element to the lineup. At New Mexico Junior College, the sophomore smashed 17 long balls and 80 RBI while swiping 25 bags in 58 games. He also posted a .337 batting average.
Panama’s Jose Ayala, brother of catcher Luis Ayala, will also patrol the outfield for the 57’s.
British Columbian Kai Gray, a sophomore at Trinidad State, has played 105 games for the Trojans. Over 316 at bats, he has 93 runs, 70 RBI, 18 RBI, 28 stolen bases and a .428 on-base percentage.
Jeremiah Sanchez comes over from the Brooks Bombers. In 41 WCBL contests last summer, Sanchez has a .311 batting average, 21 stolen bases and 37 runs.
Cameron University junior Donovan Borg is also expected to shag fly balls for the 57’s.
Home Ballpark: Mitchell Field
Home Opener: 4:05 pm, Sunday, May 26th vs. Weyburn Beavers
2023 Regular Season Results: Fourth place in East Division with 19 wins & 37 losses
2023 Playoff Results: Lost in first round to Moose Jaw Miller Express
View 2024 Swift Current 57’s Roster
WCBL Championships: 2000, 2001, 2005, 2006, 2010, 2016, 2017
Tales of Baseball 
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